Inman, Lopez sweep; Menchaca shelled

Denis Savage

08/31/2008

Chip Ambres prevents a shutout and is a likely callup. Will Inman pitches San Antonio to shutout number 20, and Jesus Lopez plates a pair in a sweep. Brian Joynt homers but Evan Scribner can't hold a lead. Anthony Contreras has four hits, but the Wizards don't like driving him in. Pablo Menchaca is shelled on a day Eugene needs a win.

Portland (70-73) lost 5-1 to Tacoma (Mariners)

A Chip Ambres ninth inning homer – his 22nd – foiled a shutout bid on a day the Beavers managed just four hits. It was the lone hit of the day for the outfielder. Thirteen of his homers have been solo shots. Ambres leads the Beavers in doubles (27), triples (7), and homers while also pacing the club with 77 RBIs and 82 runs scored. Ambers is expected to be called up this week along with catcher Luke Carlin.

Justin Germano allowed five runs on 10 hits – including nine singles – and two walks while hitting batter across five innings, dropping him to 2-9 on the season – his seventh straight losing decision. The right-hander has allowed five runs or more seven times in 16 starts. Germano has allowed double-digit hits three times this season, allowing 119 hits in 98 innings. He ends the year with a 5.69 ERA as a starter.

Adam Bass worked two scoreless frames, striking out two while retiring every man he faced. Bass has faced the minimum nine times this season but the opposition has hit .322 off him. The right-hander has allowed runs in 22 of his 50 relief appearances this season, including three of his last four coming into Sunday. The leadoff hitter of the inning came into the game with a .443 on-base percentage off Bass before he retired both he faced Sunday.

San Antonio (36-33, 75-64) won 3-0 over Corpus Christi (Astros) in game one, won 6-4 in game two

Will Inman allowed one hit and walked two over five innings to pick up the win, striking out two in a 75-pitch game that ended with the Missions Texas League leading 20th shutout. Inman, who leads the league in strikeouts with 140, is fourth in the circuit with a 3.52 ERA but also leads the league in walks with 71. Inman has allowed two runs or less in 14 of his 28 starts on the year but went five innings for just the fourth time in his last 11 starts.

Jesus Lopez went 1-for-3 with an RBI in the opener and reached base three times in the nightcap, drawing a pair of walks while adding a double, a run scored and two RBIs. Lopez is hitting .375 since joining Double-A with five multi-hit games and an RBI in four of his last six. Lopez has also drawn nine walks compared to five strikeouts. The shortstop hit .246 over 99 games in High-A Lake Elsinore with a .307 on-base percentage.

The Missions are tied with Midland for the final playoff spot heading into Monday. Frisco and Midland face off and Midland needs to win the last game versus Frisco to win the second half crown because Frisco holds the edge in head-to-head play. They have one the first two games in the series. If Midland finishes the second half with a better overall record than Frisco (they are one ahead heading into the final game), it would eliminate the Missions since they are five back in the second half.

Outfielder Chad Huffman missed the doubleheader with a shoulder injury while catcher Jose Lobaton returned after fouling a ball off his foot last series.

Lake Elsinore (39-30, 71-68) lost 5-4 to High Desert (Mariners)

With a playoff spot already under wraps, Evan Scribner gave up two runs with the Storm holding a one-run margin, taking the blown save and the loss. Scribner gave up the pair of runs on two hits and a walk while fanning two over an inning. The right-hander has allowed runs in four of his 20 appearances with the Storm, giving up four runs over his last four innings of work after allowing three over his first 19.1. The walk was just the third he has surrendered with the Storm.

Brian Joynt smacked his 12th homer of the year, belting a three-run shot in the fifth inning. It was his lone hit of the day, as he managed two walks and stole his fifth base of the season. Joynt did, however, commit two errors from his third base position. Fourteen of his last 19 hits have gone for extra bases over a 15-game span. He has homered seven times over his last 23 games and has knocked in 32 over his last 28.

Jeremy Hefner surrendered a pair of runs on three hits and two walks while striking out six over five innings in his California League debut. The right-hander went 10-5 with a 3.33 ERA across 29 games, including 24 starts, with the Fort Wayne Wizards. In 140.1 innings he allowed 117 hits and walked 41 while striking out 144. He allowed two runs or less in 17 of his starts in the Midwest League.

Fort Wayne (34-35, 71-68) won 7-3 over Great Lakes (Dodgers)

Anthony Contreras collected four hits, including a double, out of the ninth spot in the order, finally rewarded with a run scored in the ninth. It is the sixth time in 35 games that Contreras has managed to notch three or more hits in a game. Contreras is hitting .375 when he leads off an inning but inexplicably has not scored despite reaching base 13 times to leadoff a frame, including once on Sunday.

Andrew Parrino reached base four times in five trips, going 3-for-4 with his two singles, a walk and his 20th double. The infielder scored a pair of runs and drove in two. Parrino did get charged with his 21st error of the season. Parrino sits just outside the top 15 in the entire minors with his 71 walks on the season. Parrino has reached base three or more times in a game 21 times this season.

Alexis Lara made his first appearance in the Midwest League and worked a scoreless inning, giving up a hit, plunking a batter and striking out one. The right-hander went 1-0 with a 2.79 ERA across 20 appearances with Eugene. In 29 innings of work he surrendered 18 hits, walked 28 and struck out 27. He held right-handed hitters to a .148 average with the Emeralds, allowing nine hits 61 at-bats.

Eugene (37-36) lost 9-4 to Vancouver (A's)

The Emeralds began the day two games back of Salem-Keizer and didn't get the start they needed. Pablo Menchaca was charged with seven runs, all earned, on eight hits, a walk and a hit batter over 2.1 innings. The right-hander had allowed more than three earned runs just once in 12 previous starts and had allowed eight earned total over his last seven outings. His four earned runs allowed in the opening frame matched the amount of earned runs he had given up in 12 starts.

Dan Robertson snatched another multi-hit game, scored a run and notched two RBIs to push his tally to 43. Robertson has 107 hits on the season, three shy of the Eugene record and six shy of the league mark with three games to play. He has collected 36 multi-hit games through 70 contests and has reached base safely in all but five. Robertson is 60-for-149, a .403 average, since moving to the two-hole in the lineup.

Zach Herr came into the game with a pair of inherited runners on base in the third and allowed both to score. He finished his day with 2.2 innings pitched without a run on his ledger, giving up one hit and a walk while striking out two. Four of the eight runners inherited have scored with Herr on the hill. Herr has held the leadoff hitter of an inning to a .071 on-base percentage over 14 innings started.

With Salem-Keizer losing on Sunday, the Emeralds need to sweep the final series and get some help to grab a playoff berth.